1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to packaging for electronic devices or components, and more particularly to a package for an integrated circuit chip module which includes heat dissipation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Electronic equipment is often very susceptible to changes in operating temperatures, particularly warm temperatures. Excessive temperatures not only can result in a change in the response characteristics of certain electrical devices (such as semiconductor devices), but can further damage such devices beyond repair. Thermal management of electronic equipment has become even more difficult with the increasing miniaturization of electronic devices.
Components for computer systems can be particularly sensitive to high temperatures and, in the case of computationally intensive devices such as microprocessors or application-specific integrated circuits, are themselves the primary source of the heating. This problem is exacerbated in multi-chip modules which may carry several heat-generating chips in a compact setting. A variety of methods have been devised to cool off such devices, the primary approach being the use of a heat sink. The heat sink is usually a metallic block, such as aluminum, and is either in direct contact with one side of the particular integrated circuit chip or is only separated therefrom by a thin layer of thermal interface material. Air cooling is also common (e.g., a fan mounted proximate the chip), and is often used in conjunction with heat sinks. In advanced applications, cold plates are used. A cold plate is essentially a heat sink that is directly cooled via a circulating fluid, such as water that passes through or is otherwise in contact with the heat sink material. In high performance server systems cold plates are typically used on higher-power density components (e.g., processors) and the rest of the components are air cooled.